Pat Blythe – This is not about COVID……and music

This column is usually about the clubs, the music, the bands, the nightlife and the denizens of Toronto who haunt those places. The clubs are shuttered, the live music has stopped, bands are silent and the nightlife…..well there isn’t any. Yes musicians (solo or otherwise) are busy streaming on any platform possible. Artists from the around the world record themselves in isolation and then join together via video to perform, Brady Bunch style. All around the world people are trying to keep everyone’s spirits up as we sit, isolated in our homes, many alone, having had no physical human contact in almost three months.

Segarini – The Dirt on the Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody of Motley Crue

Musicians acting up is old news if you know your history. The entire concept of excess and above-the-law behavior started long before some high school dropout teased his hair or refused to get some much-needed dental work.

If you want to go to the Grandaddy of excessive, over-the top, entitlement, look no further than Johann Strauss Jr. ….

Pat Blythe – All Stars, Remembering and ONE(s) More Time…..

Well….unfortunately I wasn’t able to file last Wednesday. Assisting some friends through a personal crisis filled my time and my focus was elsewhere all week. I did, however, manage to get out for a couple of shows during the latter part of each week so today’s column will be playing catch-up.  I was on the receiving end of some much-needed tutoring with the new photo editing program (I have a hell of learning curve ahead of me) and a few of the results part of this column. Some experimentation going on as I suss out what I can and cannot do. Having some fun and messing about with a bit of colour but B&W is where my heart is.

Cameron Carpenter: The ABC’s Of Rock’n’Roll – Guitars, Guitars, Guitars

I can’t play a note on the guitar, or any instrument for that matter. Can’t tell a G from a D and wouldn’t know open tuning if I heard it. I wish I could wail but there is a huge disconnect between my brain and my fingers. Always loved the sound of a great guitar as well as the look, and what’s not to like about a Marshall stack?  I was always more partial to the look of a Les Paul than a Telecaster and the look of an SG has always left me cold. Strats look boring whereas a Tele looks more rock’n’roll to these eyes. I imagine that if I did play I would want a Flying V, to me, one of the coolest looking guitars ever, or maybe a Firebird or Explorer.